New titles feature history and a horse story
Residents of the White House - and one accomplished fellow who didn't quite become one - are prominent figures in new nonfiction books about the recent invasion of Iraq, life with Jack and Jackie Kennedy, and the accomplishments of Alexander Hamilton.

Salvador Dali's 100th birthday is celebrated
BARCELONA, Spain -- Shameless showman, brilliant artist and the proud owner of one of the world's pointiest mustaches, Salvador Dali was a cultural icon known as much for his eccentric lifestyle as for his art.

Renowned memoirist releases novel set at boy's school
STANFORD, Calif. -- Tobias Wolff strides past the 19th-century sandstone arcades and towering palms that frame the entrance to Stanford University, slinging a battered leather satchel over his shoulder and adjusting his wool driving cap.

Najimy and Gaffney come back to their off-Broadway roots
NEW YORK -- Kathy Najimy and Mo Gaffney together again. The comedy duo's latest theater piece is called "Afterbirth: Kathy and Mo's Greatest Hits" and it brings the performers back to Second Stage Theatre, where "The Further Adventures of Kathy and Mo" premiered in 1986.

Homer rescues Atlanta
ATLANTA - The scene on the field - Jimy Williams running out to protest an umpire's call, Roy Oswalt flinging a tackle box filled with bubble gum from the dugout, bench coach John Tamargo ejected by home plate umpire Gary Darling - will be remembered long after this season is completed.

Braves notebook
ATLANTA - After missing 16 games, during which the Braves went 6-10, Chipper Jones was activated from the disabled list Saturday and rejoined the lineup.

Diebold finds voting machine business stormy
NORTH CANTON, Ohio -- After the Florida punch-card debacle hurt the credibility of the last presidential election, ATM maker Diebold Inc. decided it should expand into electronic voting.

Nike treads into Indian health issues
BEAVERTON, Ore. -- As an American Indian who lost his mother to diabetes, Sam McCracken is using his role as a Nike Inc. executive to combat the illness - and help Nike boost its reputation for social responsibility.

Hopefuls gripe as Finch joins race
The last-minute entry of Robert Finch, of Athens, into the 12th Congressional District Democrat primary infuriated many party leaders and previously declared candidates, although they don't want to admit it publicly.

Tigers fall to Central Florida
CLEMSON, S.C. -- Central Florida jumped out to a 3-0 lead and held off Clemson for a 3-2 win at Doug Kingsmore Stadium on Sunday.

VA gets the message
Commission reports and recommendations often are filed and forgotten. Thankfully, that didn't happen with an advisory commission appointed by Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi that looked into closing or consolidating various Department of Veterans Affairs facilities around the nation.

DOE comes to senses
It was harder than pulling teeth, but the U.S. Department of Energy finally did the right thing by extending the radiation monitoring program on the Georgia side of the Savannah River.

Davidson's Grammy
Augusta's Davidson Fine Arts Magnet School has long been known as an educational institution of excellence.

Controls are the wrong Rx
CVS/Pharmacy, the first large drug store chain to endorse importing prescription drugs from Canada, is playing to popular opinion and CVS' chairman and CEO Thomas Ryan knows it.

Sharon's setback
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan for pulling out of Gaza and four West Bank settlements was sinking in the polls even before his Likud Party voters turned it down by a whopping 60 percent majority in a May 2 referendum.

Wi-Fi phones could be the next moneysaving move in telecom
NEW YORK -- Now that some Wi-Fi "hot spots" have grown into broader neighborhood "hot zones," the next wave is waiting: Phones and gear that send conversations over wireless Internet networks - for free or at a fraction of the cost of traditional calls.

Google's stock auction: an IPO revolution or disaster?
SAN FRANCISCO -- Google Inc.'s initial public offering has a lot of people salivating for a piece of the action - an appetite that the Internet search engine leader hopes to satisfy by inviting the masses to the bidding table.

Jackets rout Duke
ATLANTA -- Mike Trapani, in the lineup only because regular shortstop Tyler Greene was sick, homered and drove in a career-high four runs to lead Georgia Tech past Duke 14-3 Sunday, the ninth straight victory for the Yellow Jackets.

Nelson's late charge wins Kinko's Classic
AUSTIN, Texas -- With none of the day's early leaders finding the strokes to close out a victory, Larry Nelson charged from the pack Sunday to win the FedEx Kinko's Classic.

Wie impresses in Kingsmill debut
WILLIAMSBURG, Va. -- Michelle Wie's group was easy to find throughout the Michelob Ultra Open at Kingsmill: Just follow the huge crowds scrambling to be in position for each shot the 14-year-old made.

At last! Sindelar wins for the first time in 14 years
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Fourteen years and 370 tournaments removed from his last victory, Joey Sindelar made it worth the wait Sunday in the Wachovia Championship with an improbable rally and a playoff victory over fast-fading Arron Oberholser.

Widows' Home is in poor state
I have just passed by the old building that used to be the Widows' Home on Greene Street, and it's in deplorable condition. The same company that bought the old Houghton School bought the old Widows' Home and it, too, is in deplorable condition.
Jo Hales, North Augusta, S.C.

Dam engineer's CSRA contribution was mighty
The Augusta Chronicle and reporter Robert Pavey should be commended on the articles commemorating the 50th anniversary of Clarks Hill Dam and many positive benefits that this project brought to the community. Of more than 2,000 people who worked on the project, no one had a greater impact on the CSRA than its principal designer, Josef C. Patchen.
Lee E. Wheatley, P.E., Augusta

Week honors nation's nurses
PrimeCare IV Infusion Specialists is celebrating National Nurses Week from May 6-12. The purpose of National Nurses Week is to raise public awareness of the value of nursing and to help educate the public about the vital roles nurses play in meeting the health care needs of the American people.
Tammy C. Burdeaux, R.N., B.S.N., C.R.N.I., Augusta
(Editor's note: The writer is director of nursing services for PrimeCare IV Infusion Specialists.)

Cowardly Bush saves own skin
If George W. Bush had the same love of freedom for the people of Vietnam in 1968, when he was 22 years old, as he does in 2004 for the people of Iraq, he may very well have come back from Vietnam with a chest full of medals and a hero's glory.
Richard D. Renew, Martinez

Daughter thinks her mother deserves a head-to-toe makeover
Children are born with the unwavering belief that their mommy is the most beautiful mommy in the world. As years pass, that belief isn't likely to change, but Mom may find herself stuck in a time warp - a never-ending cycle of work clothes and play clothes.

Find out china pattern to replace broken dish
Dear Carson: My wife and I were invited to someone's house for cocktails and dinner. I accidentally broke one of their dinner plates. I've apologized sincerely, but now I'm wondering whether that's enough. Would it be in poor taste for me to offer to pay for the plate, even if I do not know the china pattern? Would the same answer hold true for the mess on the carpet that the spilled plate of food created? -Broken Mess

Techbits: Marketing e-mail, Green PCs, and more
NEW YORK -- Microsoft Corp., whose Hotmail and MSN services are inundated by spam, has contracted for a service that lets e-mail from legitimate companies more easily reach people's inboxes.

New iTunes boosts features, but tweaks copy rules
A year after Apple Computer Inc. proved that commercial music downloads from the Internet can be both convenient and legal, its pioneering iTunes software has undergone a revision that offers a flurry of advances - but takes one step backward.

Q&A: How to repair a damaged windowsill
Q. Kathy asks: Recently my daughter visited with her puppy. The puppy promptly gnawed off an area around the corner of two wooden windowsills in the bedroom. How can I repair these without replacing the whole sill? They are wood with a stain finish.

Rants and Raves
IF PROVEN TRUE, consider this to be a rant of epic proportion. A close friend, whose job it is to teach young children in one of our better schools of lower learning, informs me that he is constantly confronted with running out of basic supplies - yeah, paper and pencils (especially paper). Therefore, being the way he is, he takes money away from his already inadequate salary and buys some. What, pray tell, is Larke doing to earn his ill-gotten gains? You tell me.

Hooked on fish
COLLIERS - It wasn't the foot-long, black catfish that Sterling Banks caught at Lick Fork Lake on Saturday that reeled in a prize.

Blacks still hold more low-income jobs
COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Blacks disproportionately hold low-paying jobs while being underrepresented among South Carolina's highest paying professions, according to a newspaper analysis.

Music attracts many to downtown festival
Amanda Belge, of Martinez, figured taking in some sun would serve as the perfect accompaniment for an afternoon of live music at the Garden City Music Festival.

County relaxes rules of protest
BRUNSWICK, Ga. - Lawyers for Brunswick, Glynn County and protest groups said most of the major issues have been resolved in a federal lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of ordinances enacted to regulate protests during the G-8 Summit.

Views on nursing homes are sought
The Augusta Chronicle is looking for readers who would be willing to discuss their experiences and thoughts on dealing with nursing homes and elder-care facilities as part of an upcoming series of articles.

Athens fights to recoup court fees
ATHENS, Ga. - On the heels of winning a 2-year-old discrimination lawsuit, Athens Clarke-County will start to go after people who file lawsuits that liability attorneys call "frivolous."

Longer tests might affect performance
AIKEN - South Carolina pupils in the middle of a two-week grind of statewide testing will be exhausted from penciling in answer sheets and might not score as well when testing resumes next week, officials with the South Carolina Department of Education said.

Teenagers may face hate-crime charges
CANTON, Ga. - Domingo Lopez Vargas wasn't the first Hispanic day laborer to be picked up by some white teens, taken to the woods, beaten and robbed of hundreds of dollars.

Results force 'Chronicle' to examine itself
When The Augusta Chronicle kicked off its yearlong project on race relations in January, one of its goals was to examine the perceived causes of racial tension in the area.

Retailers watch for suspicious customers
Facing a growing methamphetamine problem, South Carolina authorities are turning to retailers that sell the common ingredients of the illegal stimulant in hopes of cutting off the supply chain.

Rural hospitals fight for survival
FAIRFAX, S.C. - The small-town hospital is the mother ship for doctors practicing in the outback of South Carolina and Georgia, rural health experts say, but these local institutions are being withered by the same economic pressures slamming big-city and suburban medical centers.

Party seeks bearer for Hollings' torch
COLUMBIA - As Democrats gather at the Galivants Ferry Stump today to honor U.S. Sen. Ernest "Fritz" Hollings' half-century in politics, there's a looming question about who will be the state party's leader when he retires.

Minister fought for church's rights
A few months after being named minister at Trinity Christian Methodist Episcopal Church in the summer of 1994, the Rev. J. Ronzell Maness received a phone call from Atlanta Gas Light Co. requesting permission to drill on the church's property at Eighth and Taylor streets.

The week ahead
It has been more than 20 years since the influential Boston band Mission of Burma released its last album of original work. In that time, the band has developed something of a cult following, influencing the school of rock that became known as alternative and leaving a notable, if often unacknowledged, imprint on modern music. Now, the power trio has returned with the release of ONoffON. Here's hoping it affords this act some of the fame it so richly deserves. If nothing else, the occasion earns itself the honor of being this week's Best Bet. Here's what else is happening:

DSS hopes to foster more parents
ROCK HILL, S.C. -- The state Department of Social Services hope stories like Gayle Starr's will encourage others to become foster parents.

G-8 watchdogs prepare
ATLANTA - With less than a month remaining until the G-8 Summit convenes on Sea Island, Atlanta resident Carol Bass is busy preparing to protest the annual meeting of the world's leading industrial nations.

Kid of the day
Today's Kid of the Day is Kenneth Cummings Jr. of Augusta

Rants and Raves
IF PROVEN TRUE, consider this to be a rant of epic proportion. A close friend, whose job it is to teach young children in one of our better schools of lower learning, informs me that he is constantly confronted with running out of basic supplies - yeah, paper and pencils (especially paper). Therefore, being the way he is, he takes money away from his already inadequate salary and buys some. What, pray tell, is Larke doing to earn his ill-gotten gains? You tell me.

Across the area
An Augusta woman told Richmond County sheriff's deputies she saw two young men shoot a gun at least four times in a residential area of Laney-Walker Boulevard and Strother Drive on Friday, a police record said.

Across South Carolina
COLUMBIA - Blacks disproportionately hold low-paying jobs while being underrepresented among South Carolina's highest-paying professions, according to a newspaper analysis.

Across Georgia
WARNER ROBINS - A man who suffered from Alzheimer's disease died Friday during a fight with a 91-year-old man at an assisted living facility where the two lived.

Across the area
Police arrested an Augusta man after investigators said he threatened his wife at knifepoint to prevent her from leaving their home early Sunday.

Across South Carolina
COLUMBIA - Senate Republican leaders found a way early Saturday morning to take the albatross of a 2-year-old deficit off their necks and hang accountability for dealing with it on Gov. Mark Sanford.

Renovations to old buildings revitalize area
ATHENS, Ga. - Joe McCrary wishes he could have saved the second-story wood floors in downtown Athens' old Adcock building. Nearly 2 inches thick, the floors surely would have passed a required fire-delay test, he believes.

Businesses split on bike rallies
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. -- Some businesses along the Grand Strand are hoping to persuade bikers to shift their annual rallies to different dates to keep them from cutting into more family oriented business in May.

Fallen Navy officer from Georgia honored
CHAUNCEY, Ga. -- Friends and family of a fallen Navy officer honored him at a funeral service, as the memory of man known for making everyone laugh brought many to tears.

Harris proves best successor for chairman
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - When Hootie Johnson decides he's had enough of overseeing course changes, jousting with critics and presiding as chairman of a certain private club that hosts a certain major golf championship, his successor should be apparent.

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen face age 18 in 'New York Minute'
LOS ANGELES -- Sometimes two of a kind beats a "Full House." Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen proved that by topping their childhood stint on that saccharine sitcom by starting a billion-dollar enterprise of direct-to-video movies, a little girl fashion line, and assorted books, dolls, trinkets and doodads.

Q&A with media mogul Quincy Jones
NEW YORK -- Nearly 20 years ago, legendary producer and media mogul Quincy Jones gathered about 45 top musicians, including Michael Jackson and Bruce Springsteen, for the charity song "We Are The World."

Ferrari star on his fourth pole
BARCELONA, Spain - Michael Schumacher captured the pole position for today's Spanish Grand Prix, where he will try to win his fifth straight race to start the Formula One season.

Castroneves, new teammate Hornish ready for Indy
INDIANAPOLIS - Spider-Man is back, with a new partner. Helio Castroneves earned the nickname with his celebratory fence climbs after winning the Indianapolis 500 in 2001 and 2002. He finished second last year to Gil de Ferran.

Jackson talks to Lakers about the future
LOS ANGELES -- Facing a potential knockout punch, the fractious Lakers received a warning from coach Phil Jackson on Saturday concerning their uncertain future.

Harris a leading candidate in Hawks search
ATLANTA -- The Atlanta Hawks are placing a premium on experience in their search for a new coach, and that emphasis may push Del Harris to the top of the team's list of candidates.

Opinion pages will seek one Augusta
I've been in Augusta for nearly two years now. And I realize that, as long as I live here, I'll never fully appreciate all the good things it has to offer.

'Chronicle' will remain a vigilant watchdog
The job of a newspaper in a free and open society is to report the news without fear or favor. It must do so accurately, promptly and to the best of its ability.(Editor's note: The writer is chairman and chief executive officer of Morris Communications Co. LLC and publisher of The Augusta Chronicle.)

'Chronicle' will remain a vigilant watchdog
The job of a newspaper in a free and open society is to report the news without fear or favor. It must do so accurately, promptly and to the best of its ability.
(Editor's note: The writer is chairman and chief executive officer of Morris Communications Co. LLC and publisher of The Augusta Chronicle.)

Opinion pages will seek one Augusta
I've been in Augusta for nearly two years now. And I realize that, as long as I live here, I'll never fully appreciate all the good things it has to offer.

Marquex, Pacquiao may do it all over again
LAS VEGAS -- Juan Manuel Marquez and Manny Pacquiao gave themselves a tough act to follow with a thrilling featherweight title fight that had multiple knockdowns, lots of blood and even a little bit of controversy.

Greenbrier falls short
It was fitting that St. Pius and Greenbrier would have to settle their playoff meeting this way. The two schools bickered over everything from game site to game time to uniform selection in the days and moments leading up to their Georgia High School Association Class AAAA state quarterfinal matchup at Greenbrier.

Overtime
In Albuquerque, N.M., Cindy Parlow, Mia Hamm and Lori Chalupny scored second-half goals to lead the U.S. women's national team past Mexico 3-0 on Sunday in an exhibition match to prepare for the Olympics.

Overtime
Paul Williams is still undefeated. Williams, from Aiken, upped his record to 23-0 with a unanimous decision over Luis Hernandez in a welterweight fight Friday night in Mashantucket, Conn.

Outdoors calendar
NOTE: All the listed events are open to the public, although membership in some organizations may be required.

Many anglers favor shellcracker
When wary shellcracker are guarding their spring beds, there is no such thing as loneliness - or boredom - unless you run out of worms.

Force snaps losing streak
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Leon Murray threw for 334 yards and eight touchdowns, and the Georgia Force snapped a seven-game losing streak with a 72-51 victory over the Columbus Destroyers on Sunday in the Arena Football League.